A certaine great Sultan of Persia called Ribuska, entertaynes in loue the Lady Selamour, sent her this triquet reuest pitiously bemoaning his estate, all set in merquetry with letters of blew Saphire and Topas artificially cut and entermingled.

Selamour dearer then his owne life
To thy di stresssed wretch cap tive,
Ri buska whome late ly erst
Most cru el ly thou perst
With thy dead ly dart,
That paire of starres
Shi ning a farre
Turne from me, to me
That I may & may not see
The smile, the loure
That lead and driue
Me to die to liue
Twise yea thrise
In one
hourre.

To which Selamour to make the match egall, and the figure entire,
answered in a standing Triquet richly engrauen with letters of like
stuffe. 
                     Power
                    Of death
                  Nor of life
                Hath Selamour,
              With Gods it is rife
            To giue and bereue breath
          I may for pitie perchaunce
        Thy lost libertie re — store,
      Vpon thine othe with this penaunce,
   That while thou liuest thou neuer loue no more.

This condition seeming to Sultan Ribuska very hard to performe, and cruell to be enjoyned him, doeth by another figure a Taper, signifying hope, answere the Lady Selamour, which dittie for lack of time I translated not.

Of the Spire or Taper called Pyramis.

The Taper is the longest and sharpest triangle that is, & while he mounts vpward he waxeth continually more slender, taking both his figure and name of the fire, whole flame if ye marke it, is alwaies pointed, and naturally by his forme couets to clymbe:  the Greekes call him Pyramis.  The Latines in vse of Architecture call him Obeliscus, it holdeth the altitude of six ordinary triangles, and in metrifying his base can not well be larger then a meetre of six, therefore in his altitude he will require diuers rabates to hold so many sizes of meetres as shall serue for his composition, for neare the toppe there wil be roome little inough for a meetre of two sillables, and sometimes of one to finish the point.  I haue set you downe one or two examples to try how ye can disgest the maner of the deuise.

Her Maiestie, for many parts in her most noble and vertuous nature
to be found, resembled to the spire.  Ye must begin beneath according
to the nature of the deuice.

Skie,                  1
-----
A  zurd                  2
in  the
assurde.
--------
And  better,              3
And  richer,
Much greter,
--------------
Crowne   &    empir
After   an     hier
For   to     aspire         4
Like flames of fire
In  formes of spire
-------------------
To   mount  on   hie,
Con  ti   nu   al  ly
With  trauel  &  teen